U.S. Rep. Wilson looking forward to GOP Congress

U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson, R-Springdale, said he's looking forward to having a Republican-controlled Congress for the remaining two years of Barack Obama's presidency.

He's also eager to start his new role as chairman of an "emerging threats" House Armed Services panel, Wilson told reporters Friday at his Sunset Boulevard office.

"The threat of terrorism needs to be fully addressed and it needs to be blocked before the American people have another attack here," he said.

Wilson said Friday that the U.S. House will have the largest Republican majority since 1928. The Southeast also has a strong GOP delegation, he said, with the party picking up seats in North Carolina and Georgia.

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Many GOP-led proposals have passed the House and have gone on to die in the Senate, but that could change with the GOP-majority in the upper chamber, he added.

Wilson said that he hopes to focus on jobs growth for South Carolina. He would like Congress to vote on regulations that have an impact of $100 million or more, instead of passing as "an executive action that's unilateral by bureaucrats."

Reversing across-the-board budget cuts to military spending is another priority for the congressman.

"We've got growing threats around the world," he said. "This is not the time to reduce our military."

Wilson said he wants all options -- including American boots on the ground -- on the table when it comes to fighting terrorism.

"This is the security of our country, the survival of our civilization."

The congressman also said he hopes Congress will repeal the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare.

But, he added, Wilson said he is disappointed in Obama's recent threat of vetoing congressional action.

Wilson had hoped Obama would "have been more, 'Let's work together.' "

"We always know that a veto is possible, but to announce the veto before he's considered the legislation to me is a very negative way to approach the issue."

With the GOP majority, Wilson said, "I believe we can stop much of what the president has done," referring to policies including the federal healthcare law and immigration. Wilson has said Ebola-infected terrorists could sneak into the country under current immigration policies.

Wilson's other priorities:

• Pushing for a two-year federal budget cycle and a balanced-budget constitutional amendment

• Promoting construction of the Keystone XL pipeline

• Boosting clean energy across the state through energy-savings performance contracts with companies